Probate In Colorado: Selling Real Estate

If you have any questions about how to sell real estate during probate, call  720-547-2319 to set up a flat-rate* legal consult with an estate attorney.

Selling real estate, after someone has passed away, can be challenging.

For starters, even if you’ve been designated as the Personal Representative (executor) of the estate, that alone won’t allow you to sell the decedent’s home, townhome, condo, or vacation home.

In Colorado, most title companies won’t allow the transfer of real estate without a Personal Representative’s deed that has been drafted by an attorney. And for good reason…a poorly drafted document could torpedo the transfer of the property and/or cause problems down the line for the executor.

We can help you with all aspects of probate, including the Personal Representative deed (PR deed).

Similar to a quitclaim deed, the Personal Representative deed transfers ownership of the property from the person who has died to the estate.

This legal document, along with proof of your legal authority in acting on behalf of the estate (a Letter of Administration) is the only way to transfer legal title to real estate from the deceased person’s estate. This holds true whether the property you’re selling has a mortgage on it or not.

If the real estate does have a loan on it, or liens against it, the title company will take care of paying off all of the debts and distribute the remaining proceeds to the estate.

While you’re waiting for the sale of the real estate, one of your duties as Personal Representative is to take care of the property, pay all of the bills, and collect any income that’s being generated.

It’s important to note that under Colorado law, real estate that’s held in “joint tenancy” doesn’t go through probate. Instead, when one of the joint tenants dies, the remaining joint tenant(s) owns the entire property.

Contact us today to learn more about selling real estate and other assets in probate.